Author ~ Writer ~ Storyteller

Author ~ Writer ~ Storyteller

Noble Lies

Not everyone will live happily ever after…

It is not much of a fairytale at all. By the time they meet, Jez is burdened by dark truths and fears for her family. Michael’s heart is already entangled in a forbidden love. The Church is watching – closely, and guarding more secrets than just arranged marriage details. For Jez and Michael, simply marrying their match becomes complicated…and deadly. Not everyone will live happily ever after.

From the Author

Noble Lies takes place in a fictitious place during a fictitious time in the past. There are no mythological creatures or magic; just hard and fast rules and a system that’s been handed down from generation to generation. Oh, and a bad guy or two.

Under the rule of a make-believe king and an overbearing church, the noble class young singles in this story don’t need to worry about the dating scene. Their life partner is selected for them – their best possible match – and they even come with a guarantee of love. Can you imagine not having to date and screen all those candidates for your hand in marriage?

But then…can you imagine not being given a choice? After all, they’ll be your spouse in every sense of the word… And what if things get really complicated leading up to your wedding? Those are the thoughts and questions that entered my mind as the story crept in and wouldn’t let go.

And the story is not done. A sequel has been in the works for a while now. (I’ve gotten a little distracted with the Home Series.) While Noble Lies is considered to be a stand-alone novel (the story closes – there is no cliffhanger), my mind is not quite done with these characters and broader plot lines; there is more story to be told. My characters have been waiting patiently for me to return and write them out of their current scenes and I’m confident we’ll see the sequel to Noble Lies (not yet titled) in 2014.

Enjoy this excerpt from Noble Lies

Newbury, July 14th

In the darkness of the early July morning, the young woman clung to her cape against the drizzling rain as her bare feet stumbled over the stony and slippery ground that led toward the barn. She was drunk with grief and her vision blurred by the heavy stream of tears that rolled down her face, intermingling with the cool, wet droplets of rain that soaked her skin.

The doctor’s cheerful announcement that night was the last bit of news her soul could absorb. If Michael had only said the right things to her; if he’d only understood how alone she’d felt in that moment and how betrayed she felt by his actions, then perhaps her grief wouldn’t feel as overwhelming as it did just then. Perhaps she’d harbor a small ounce of hope to see her through like she had over the last few weeks, but instead, they’d clashed in confrontation; she and the man she loved.

She’d put her trust in him and he had disappointed her. And even though she’d uttered those words to him; suggested to him that they end it, the reality was that in that moment, she had wanted him to fight to keep her and reject her idea and he hadn’t. He just walked away, and when he did, her heart exploded in her chest and her remaining strength crumbled. She felt terribly broken. The events over the last couple months had robbed her of her will to live. All hope was lost.

When she reached the barn, she struggled with the latch before successfully opening the door. Inside, while her eyes adjusted to the even greater darkness, she felt the warmth that filled the air off the bodies of the horses she knew occupied a line of stalls in front of her. She heard their heavy bodies shift in curiosity at the very early morning visitor, and inhaled the sweet smell of fresh horse manure. Ignoring their voices urging her to stop by their stalls with a fresh carrot or apple, she felt along the wall to the left of the door until her hands felt the roughness of the coiled rope. Lifting it off its hook, she made her way farther along the wall until she felt the ladder that led up toward the loft above. Placing her arm through the coil of rope, she reached up and gripped a rung; her arms pulling her upwards while her wet feet pushed her ahead.

When the old ranch hand stepped into the barn a couple hours later, he found the horses in an unsettled state. Their usual curious and friendly greetings had been replaced with apprehension. He considered that the pregnant mare had miscarried during the night and checked her stall for the source of their worry but found her to be fine. Perhaps they were concerned about another impending storm. While the early morning drizzle had taken a break, the sky was still rather dark and foreboding. He hoped it would blow over today since he needed to fix the fence in the north pasture before another cow wandered off as one did the day before. He didn’t relish undertaking that job in a downpour or thunderstorm.

Gently assuring the handful of beasts that all was fine, he set about his morning chores. He didn’t realize how wrong he was until several minutes later when he happened to glance up above the center aisle to the open trap door through which they threw down hay and straw. In the gray light of the loft above, he saw her lifeless feet and the bottom of her damp nightgown hanging in midair. A stallion reared in its stall in response to the sudden alarm sounding from the man’s throat as he called out for help from anyone who may hear.